Camassia leichtlinii

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Monocots
Ordo: Asparagales

Familia: Asparagaceae
Subfamilia: Agavoideae
Genus: Camassia
Species: Camassia leichtlinii
Subspecies: C. l. subsp. leichtlinii – C. l. subsp. suksdorfii
Name

Camassia leichtlinii (Baker) S.Watson (1885)
Synonyms

Basionym
Camassia esculenta var. leichtlinii Baker, Bot. Mag. 103: t. 6287. 1877.

Homotypic
Quamasia leichtlinii (Baker) Coville, Proc. Biol. Soc. Wash. 11: 63. 1898.
Camassia leichtlinii subsp. typica Gould, Amer. Midl. Naturalist 28: 722 (1942), not validly publ.

Distribution
Native distribution areas:

Continental: Northern America
British Columbia; California; Oregon; Washington

References: Brummitt, R.K. 2001. TDWG – World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions, 2nd Edition
References

Watson, S. 1885: Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 20: 376.
USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN) [Online Database]. [1]

Links

Govaerts, R. et al. 2019. Camassia leichtlinii in World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2019 Jan. 07. Reference page.
International Plant Names Index. 2019. Camassia leichtlinii. Published online. Accessed: Jan. 07 2019.
The Plant List 2013. Camassia leichtlinii in The Plant List Version 1.1. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2019 Jan. 07.
Tropicos.org 2019. Camassia leichtlinii. Missouri Botanical Garden. Published on the internet. Accessed: 2019 Jan. 07.

Vernacular names
English: great camas, large camas

Camassia leichtlinii, the great camas or large camas, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae. This herbaceous perennial is native to western North America in British Columbia, Canada and California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, USA.[2]
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Description

Great camas is a perennial herbaceous plant that grows from a bulb. It can grow 24–48 inches (61–122 cm) tall. Leaves are long and narrow, stemming from the basal rosette. The inflorescence is a spike-like cluster on a leafless stem that is held above the leaves.[3] It can be mistaken for the more common Camassia quamash, which has an overlapping range.
Ecology

It needs consistent moisture in the spring, but will not be harmed by seasonal drought after the seed pods mature and the leaves dry out.[3] Camas stands can benefit from seasonal fires as well, as they aid in regeneration and reduce competition from brush and weeds.[3]
Uses

The bulbs are edible, but must be baked at length. Traditionally, they were cooked in fire pits for at least three hours, and ideally for between one and three days. Caution should be taken not to confuse this species with the deadly meadow death-camas.[4]
References

"Camassia leichtlinii". NatureServe Explorer. NatureServe. Retrieved 2018-04-07.
"Comprehensive Report Species -". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 2018-04-11.
"Great Camas" (PDF). December 5, 2000. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
Nyerges, Christopher (2017). Foraging Washington: Finding, Identifying, and Preparing Edible Wild Foods. Guilford, CT: Falcon Guides. ISBN 978-1-4930-2534-3. OCLC 965922681.